CDU shut out of parliament in the north-east, Die Linke triumphs in Berlin

Sunday's regional elections in Germany were a heavy setback for Chancellor Friedrich Merz's CDU. In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the party failed to clear the electoral threshold and remains excluded from a state parliament for the first time. In Berlin, it suffered a clear defeat, overtaken by a wide margin by Die Linke. Counting in all constituencies has been completed in both states.

In both regions, the most radical force on each side of the political spectrum gained ground: the AfD in the north-east of the country, Die Linke in the capital.

The results in the two states

In Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, according to the regional electoral commission, the AfD won 38.2% of the vote, more than double its result from five years ago. The SPD recorded slight losses but remains the second-largest force with 35.5%. Die Linke follows with 6.5%, while the Greens enter parliament with 5.7%. The CDU stopped at 4.9%, below the threshold, and the BSW also missed entry, with 4.8%. In the new state parliament in Schwerin, the AfD will hold 32 seats, the SPD 29, while Die Linke and the Greens will each get five.

In Berlin, after the full count, Die Linke won with 25.7% of the vote, well ahead of the other parties. It is followed by the CDU with 18.8%, the AfD with 16.3%, the Greens with 14.3% and the SPD with 12.1%. The result strips the outgoing CDU-SPD governing coalition of its majority. In the Berlin parliament, Die Linke will get 47 seats, the CDU 34, the AfD 29 and the SPD 22.

The double defeat increases the pressure on Merz, who was already under strain within his own party. On election night, however, the chancellor made clear he intends to remain at the head of the CDU and the government.